I think the difference between changed and mismatched depends on just what was changed. The name changed on the FSL, or something on the MSL. If the location matches it is mismatched, but if the location matches but the name is changed then it is "changed".

"This is how it appears to work based on what I have observed / tested:If you edit the station name it becomes "changed" - if someone edits the MSL, it becomes "mismatched". When you click on the notice is pulls the list of suggested matches with a suggested match. If you click to "Select" it then updates your FSL to match what you selected in the MSL suggestions."

Thanks, I think we're getting warmer. I just selected the "Changed" link and it offered me a list, one of which was the station in question. Once selection of the station was accomplished, it now says "Matched".

However, it does not seem to be as a result of the station name being changed? Both when the staus said "Changed" and afterward as the status now reads "Matched", the name of the station, Sam's Club, remained the same.

According to the OP, he changed the name of the station in his FSL and this created the "Not Matched" indicator to appear.

I'll ask again that a moderator please respond with a brief explanation of what the "Changed" icon indicates? What has been changed?

This is how it appears to work based on what I have observed / tested:If you edit the station name it becomes "changed" - if someone edits the MSL, it becomes "mismatched". When you click on the notice is pulls the list of suggested matches with a suggested match. If you click to "Select" it then updates your FSL to match what you selected in the MSL suggestions.

What the OP wants is to have that match occur in the background and allow him to keep the "personalized" view for his personal view. Although this might work well in some applications, the OP is new to this site and does not understand the number of moving parts and old base code that underlies the web site and how it also affects the several different flavor of APPS.

Maybe the OP needs to spend more time learning how to use what exists and understand the big picture and try to frame his suggestions in a more constructive manner rather than calling the site out needing more usability testing before he has even spent sufficient time learning the site as it exists.

Change can be good, or it can be bad. I still challenge him to find a better gas site or even more so, the "perfect" site.

The station ID is visible on the MSL. The ID is linked to the name. To prevent duplicate posting, the name needs to be uniform. You have a CS degree, SomeNumbskull. You should be able to figure it out. Maybe you could send some programming code to TPTB that would allow everyone to do what you want to do.

Yep, each of the Circle K's with SHELL prominently display the SHELL on the big sign. It becomes more difficult if the main visible branding is "Circle K" but you have SHELL on the pumps if you drive into the station.

Personally, I have real issues with how the site labels stations. Or knowing which Mobile on my FSL is which Mobile on the road.

Don,Can you help me understand why there's any dependency on a station's name for price reporting? If each station has a unique ID (that is not visible to the user and rightly shouldn't be), why isn't that enough to link the stations I'm reporting prices on through my mobile app to the stations that are in the master list?

Point levels make no difference. This site isn't that hard to use. Spend some time looking around and trying things. That's what I and many other members have done. If you want to be a user instead of a contributor go ahead! Just don't complain if something isn't to you liking.

"Ummm....no they don't. They are all at different addresses and most are probably in different areas. "

ok, whatever. you at 3M points and me at 17K are obviously at the complete opposite ends of the spectrum of using this app. I don't see it from your perspective and you'll likely never see it from mine. you are a contributor, I will remain a user and who I really should be talking to about this is the developer.

TxJeans > "This is a problem for many of those as some are more prominently listed as say "Circle K'"

YES, I'm glad to see another thinking outside the box on this! Here's another of my use cases that got me to where I am about this.

I snowmobile in my area and have been building FSLs for stations in the various areas we visit across northern Utah. When it comes time to fuel up for a ride, I would like to look at the stations in those destination areas to determine if we should get fuel on the way or closer to that riding area.

Now, since I'm not in those areas enough to know the cross-streets, I gave them the nickname that helps *me* remember which is which. Some of those stations are easy to remember *but*, others are not and prominently listed as something other than Sinclair or Holiday. To me, I know them as "Kamas Food Town" or "Walker's Rest Stop".

Again, I could memorize what station is where on a seasonal basis, but the logical thing for me to do, as a new user, was to "edit" the name to something that made sense to me in what I thought was my own personal FSL. I did look at using the "Comments" field, but it sounds like that's another whole can of worms that creates even a different set of problems in this system.

"So what you are saying is the only way you know a station is by some obscure nickname you have given it? Hmmm............. "

It's kinda funny that I have to justify the way I chose to use the app but no, that's just the way *I* want to use it since that's what makes sense to *me*. You want to make the app better or not? As I said, it is easier for me to IDENTIFY a station by an obscure nickname I give rather than by the generic brand name. I have TONS of Mavericks in my area and they ALL LOOK THE SAME in GasBuddy.

I think the problem here is still a lack of understanding and only seeing this from your over-experienced glasses. I don't want you (or anyone else) to see my station's obscure nickname. That should only be visible (and applicable) to me. When I report a price, the app should send over the price and the station ID to the main system for everyone else's benefit. The station NAME should have no critical relevance in the overall system's functionality other than to give new users a starting point to pick stations they want to report prices for.

TPTB is a new FLA I haven't seen yet. What is that and where does it come into this picture??

Scrapheap wrote > "I am under the impression that he just wants it to appear on his FSL the way he wants it to appear on his FSL so he has an easier idea of where he is in his FSL and is reporting the prices for the station he is seeing."

Yes, THANK YOU! I'm glad someone (other than me) finally gets it.

Scrapheap wrote > "He would like the results of the reported prices to be visible to everyone else in standard GasBuddy format."

Your typical user should not need to know (or care) about what's happening on the backend. But for purposes of this technical-ish discussion, the app itself should be able to pass a user's reported prices to the main system by STATION ID, not by STATION NAME...especially if that station was added to an individual's FSL as a result of searching or viewing on the map (meaning, the station was already in the system and is not being duplicated). Make sense? That's all I'm saying.

Scrapheap wrote > "It appears to be actually working this way for every search I've tried (map and android app)"

Can you explain what's working? When I edited station names in my FSL (from the website since you can't do it in the app), I'm pretty sure it worked for a few days. I don't remember if it went to "unmatched" right away, but I do know it reported prices for a while after that label edit. Then I began to notice my reports not being displayed for others to see. I can try it again to confirm the exact repro steps if that would help.

TxJeans wrote > However, I suspect he wants the station to show his nickname throughout the site according to HIS login. I doubt that the TPTB would make such a change without a totally revamped from the bones up update and even then, they may not see the need for such feature.

I am under the impression that he just wants it to appear on his FSL the way he wants it to appear on his FSL so he has an easier idea of where he is in his FSL and is reporting the prices for the station he is seeing. He would like the the results of the reported prices to be visible to everyone else in standard GasBuddy format. It appears to be actually working this way for every search I've tried (map and android app) except one performed from the home page of the website.

FWIW - The "Harmon's" in the MSL has a main station name of "Sinclair" and an alternate name of "Harmon's Fuel Stop". If you search the MSL for stations in South Jordan, the station appears as "Sinclair (Harmon's Fuel Stop)". If you bring it up on the map it appears as "Sinclair (Harmon's Fuel Stop)". Doing an area search from the home page of the website or on the Android app returns "Sinclair".

Scout, what he is saying is that on the FSL it should be able to have a field tied to the key in the table for the MSL identity of the station. When posting from the FSL it should post according to the key identity so all others will see the "official" name but he can have his "nickname" visible in the FSL.

However, I suspect he wants the station to show his nickname throughout the site according to HIS login. I doubt that the TPTB would make such a change without a totally revamped from the bones up update and even then, they may not see the need for such feature.

They have other stations where folks have complained about how it is branded when they have one brand for the "gas" and a convenience store attached. This is a problem for many of those as some are more prominently listed as say "Circle K' and others are "Circle K" but show the gas brand or other branding more prominently. For instance, in my folks town there is a Circle K that dispenses SHELL. Circle K is in the station drop down for the search and so is SHELL. The station near them is listed as SHELL not Circle K in the MSL.

"I still don't get why the Station ID can't remain behind the scenes AND be the key that stations are matched to? ...then the Station Nickname *text* can be whatever I want it to be."

The station ID is behind the scenes. The reason you can't call the station whatever you want to call it is because TPTB want standardized station names. Why? Standardization prevents duplicate station posting. Before the MSL came into existence, this was a huge problem. One station could be posted multiple times. Why? Because members wanted to call a station whatever they wanted.

"When I go to get gas, I look at my list of 10 or so local stations. I think it's easier to quickly identify a station by a nickname as opposed to thinking about the cross-street addresses."

So what you are saying is the only way you know a station is by some obscure nickname you have given it? Hmmm.............

"Looking at your screen shot, I see what you are trying to do but don't see the value."

Well, it appears we will agree to disagree again. It has value to me. That's the way I want to use it. I can't be the only to see some logic in this approach. When I go to get gas, I look at my list of 10 or so local stations. I think it's easier to quickly identify a station by a nickname as opposed to thinking about the cross-street addresses. Again, I think the latter scenario is more likely to make a mistake...or stated another way, you have to stop and think about the addresses instead of just a quick glance that is more clear in my opinion.

Here's another scenario that has value to me. A station near my house is associated with a grocery store. To *me*, I only know it as "Harmon's". However, according to your master list, it's a Sinclair. There is not ONE single reference to Sinclair anywhere at that location. So as a result, I will continue to think about it as Harmon's.

"Whether you think it's 1970's coding or not, it works very well."

No, actually, I would say it doesn't if it's creating duplicates in the system. Let's be open to new ideas. Just because mom has always cut the turkey that way, doesn't mean there isn't a better way.

There is a Station ID number that I am assuming is used to tie everything together in the MSL, but it is not a number that members can use. It is used to maintain a unique ID for each station, because many stations will have the same Station Name, i.e. Chevron (which for our purposes is really the brand name). If a duplicate for a given Chevron station is entered in the MSL (as might be if, say, the original station disappears from the MSL [even temporarily which has happened]), the ID number is used to distinguish the two forever, with one being used and the other forever dormant.

There is no "Station Nickname" that a member could use to do what you want, i.e. have the station show only to you with a custom name. Here is some philosophy: Humans can do one thing very well, and that is to remember things along a route. Since stations are typically reported along a route, it is their position along the route that makes them memorable. Therefore if you order your FSL stations according to a route, you will easily recognize them by the order and may very well be able to dispense with the need for nicknames. And since you can't have them anyway, give that a try.

When you report a price, the Station Name field is what is used on the report as it appears to others, so you don't want to customize it as the programming stands now. You may wish to make a suggestion that a Station Nickname field be added to the FSL that would be visible only to the list's owner.

To upload a screen shot,1. Establish a Photo Album to hold all one-off* pix for linking from the forum, e.g. this one.2. Paste the screen shot into MS Paint or something similar.3. Save the image with a file name.4. Upload to the album the image by its file name (which may then be deleted from your PC is you no longer wish to save it).5. Enter the Title field. If desired, enter photo details or where the photo was used in the Caption field.6. With the photo displayed enlarged, copy the URL in the address bar.7. When composing the forum msg, click the Insert Link button to the left of the dialog box and paste the URL of the photo into the Link Field. (Save yourself some experimentation and read this guide for the fine points of creating links in the forum.)

To answer your last question, while the ID may be used behind the scenes, it is the Station Name field that members see and relate to, so they should stay matched so that we all relate to the stations with the same references.

----*As opposed to a series of pix on the same subject which might be worth creating a separate album for.

Every station in the MSL has a unique ID. Looking at your screen shot, I see what you are trying to do but don't see the value. When you post these stations from your FSL, you are creating duplicate postings for the same station. One of the purposes of the MSL is to eliminate duplicate postings.

Whether you think it's 1970's coding or not, it works very well.

I have sent the moderators a note letting them know what you are doing and the problems it is causing.

I dunno... keying off a text label seems like a programming technique of the 70's. I want to know why a station isn't assigned an ID (or unique code or GUID or whatever numerical value that becomes the primary key) when it is accepted in the master list. then, when someone adds a station from a search result (meaning the station is already in the system), I can call it whatever I want for my personal reasons and have it remain "matched".

when someone accidentally adds a station that's already in the master list, is there a manual process to clean up duplicates?

a screen shot of my "Stations near home" has been uploaded to my profile's photo album.

right now, I don't think my price reports are being accepted because of my current unmatched status. so yeah, that's frustrating as a new user.

Changing the comments to a station in your FSL doesn't change the status to unmatched. If you change the station name or address in your FSL, the station will be unmatched.

Why should it matter? It matters because the MSL has the station as one name and you want to call it something different. If the station name in the MSL is incorrect correct it but follow the rules for station names.

Rich, I changed a comment on a station last night and didn't notice that so I just tried again. All of mine have remained "matched". That said, I have had stations on my list that were matched that showed up not being matched at a later time. I matched it and cleared the message. I didn't check, but assume that maybe someone edited the station in the MSL?

For Someome, instead of changing the name, try putting your stations in different lists for different areas, or grouping them by location on your list.

This site is about pricing and it is free. If you want a perfect site, you may need to spend money for it. You will get better help on subjects you want to learn about if you tone down your "this site stinks" attitude.

If I understand the question correctly, you're taking a known and identified ("matched") station, and essentially changing to the station name from "CornerStore Exxon" to "My name for the station", thereby making it, for all practical purposes, a new and unknown station. One that hasn't yet been "matched" by others as a known and correctly identified station.

Nothing would stop members from identifying one station, located (for example, at the intersection of Smith and Jones Avenues, with the overhead name of "Salt Lake Exxon", in the "Green Brier" section of the city as:Smith ExxonJones Avenue ExxonSmith & Jones Exxon (or Smith-Jones Gas)Green Brier ExxonSalt Lake Exxonand so on.

Until the station is "matched", it's recognized as being "new" or at best an as-yet-unconfirmed station. If I understand right.

What happens when you "personalize" your favorites list and change "Salt Lake Exxon" to "Down the Street Rip-Off", is when you post prices for the station, it will appear as "Down the Street Rip-Off" (or whatever name you give it). Hard for others to identify with the station and the website is, ultimately, for the masses, not for the singular.

I'm sure this will come off as a dumb question, but why should that matter.

I took a station from a search (meaning, I did not try to add it again - to avoid being a duplicate). Why wouldn't it keep the "link" between what I renamed it (for purposes of my personal use) and the master list (for purposes of everyone's use).